CNN Host Is Dragged Into Phone Scandal

CNN Host Is Dragged Into Phone Scandal

By DON VAN NATTA Jr. and RAVI SOMAIYA
Published: July 23, 2011


It was perhaps inevitable that the phone hacking accusations in Britain would cross the Atlantic and reach Piers Morgan, the flamboyant former Fleet Street editor who is now the host of “Piers Morgan Tonight” on CNN.


Suspicions About Former Editor in Battle Over Story Complicate Hacking Scandal (July 23, 2011)
Pressure on Murdochs Mounts in Hacking Scandal (July 23, 2011) James Hipwell, a former journalist at The Daily Mirror, a tabloid edited by Mr. Morgan until 2004, now says that phone hacking was “endemic” at the paper. “Piers was extremely hands-on as an editor,” Mr. Hipwell, 45, told the British newspaper The Independent in an interview published Saturday. “I can’t say 100 percent that he knew about it. But it was inconceivable he didn’t.”

In an e-mail interview, Mr. Morgan struck back at that allegation and other suggestions by members of Parliament and a widely read political blog that his reporters had landed scoops at The Daily Mirror based on phone hacking. Members of Parliament have also said that Mr. Morgan should be questioned.

“I have never hacked a phone, told anyone to hack a phone, nor to my knowledge published any story obtained from the hacking of a phone,” Mr. Morgan said. “I am not aware, and have never seen evidence to suggest otherwise, that any Mirror story published during my tenure was obtained from phone hacking.”

Mr. Morgan challenged Mr. Hipwell’s credibility, pointing to the fact that he is a convicted felon who went to jail in 2006 for 59 days for buying stock in companies before touting them in a Daily Mirror column, then selling the shares when the prices rose. Mr. Morgan himself was accused of profiting from the sale of one company’s stock based on the column, but said he “was cleared by both internal inquiry and external legal investigation.” Mr. Hipwell “lied repeatedly during the various investigations into the scandal — both about me and about other colleagues,” Mr. Morgan said. “He is not a credible witness.”

In an e-mail, Mr. Hipwell replied that his lawyers thought his case and Mr. Morgan's had been "identical" and that they were surprised that Mr. Morgan was cleared. "No one has got to the bottom of why this happened," he wrote.

A spokesman for Trinity Mirror, the publisher of The Daily Mirror, denied Mr. Hipwell’s allegations about hacking.

Asked if CNN had pressed him for assurances that he was not involved in phone hacking, Mr. Morgan replied, “My unequivocal statements on this matter speak for themselves.”

A CNN spokeswoman said on Saturday that Mr. Morgan had been asked about the accusations and “denied involvement in phone hacking both publicly and privately.”

In 2007, Mr. Morgan was quoted in GQ magazine as saying that the former News of the World reporter Clive Goodman, who went to jail for hacking phones of members of the royal household, had been made “a scapegoat for a widespread practice.” (The News of the World is the newspaper that has been at the heart of the hacking scandal.) Mr. Morgan said on Saturday that he had heard rumors about phone hacking in tabloid newsrooms for years, and “it would now appear those rumors were correct.”

Mr. Hipwell’s accusations are the latest in a series of charges against Mr. Morgan; the newspaper he edited, The Daily Mirror; and its sister tabloids The People and The Sunday Mirror.

This month, Adrian Sanders, a member of Parliament, accused Mr. Morgan’s old newspaper of obtaining a 2002 scoop — that the former England soccer manager Sven-Goran Eriksson had had an affair with a television personality, Ulrika Jonsson — by means of phone hacking. British lawmakers are protected from libel lawsuits while speaking in Parliament.

Last Tuesday, during the questioning of James and Rupert Murdoch as part of the parliamentary committee, Louise Mensch, a Conservative member of Parliament, used the same protection to wonder aloud why lawmakers had not questioned Mr. Morgan. She then suggested — incorrectly, as it turned out — that Mr. Morgan had admitted in a book he wrote that phone hacking had produced big scoops for The Daily Mirror. She appeared to conflate a passage from his book with several posts by the widely read British political blogger Guido Fawkes.

Later that day on CNN, an audibly angry Mr. Morgan confronted Ms. Mensch to deny the accusations. Ms. Mensch, he said, was “a coward” for refusing to repeat her claims outside of Parliament, where she would not be covered by the immunity protections. He challenged her to “repeat what you said about it and then maybe go and buy a copy of my book.”

)
Pressure on Murdochs Mounts in Hacking Scandal (July 23, 2011) In the e-mail interview, Mr. Morgan said he intended to write a letter to John Whittingdale, the Conservative chairman of Parliament’s culture, media and sport select committee, to demand a correction and apology from Ms. Mensch.

“Ms. Mensch accused me of personal criminal activity,” Mr. Morgan said, “and I never broke the law as an editor.” Ms. Mensch did not respond to a message seeking comment.

Mr. Morgan said he was gratified to see that Tom Watson, the Labour lawmaker who led the parliamentary questioning of the Murdochs on Tuesday, had said Saturday on Twitter: “I’ve not seen any evidence linking @PiersMorgan to hacking. And I’ve seen a lot of documentation these last 2 years.”

Mr. Morgan was dismissed as editor of The Daily Mirror after it printed photographs, purporting to show British soldiers abusing Iraqi prisoners, that were revealed to be fake. He had also served as an editor at The News of the World in 1994 and 1995.

“I left the News of the World in 1995, at least five years before anyone has suggested phone hacking started at the newspaper,” he said, “and before cellphones were even in widespread use in the U.K.”

Mr. Morgan was asked about his longtime friendships with Rebekah Brooks, the former chief of The News of the World’s parent company who was arrested a week ago, and Andy Coulson, the former News of the World editor who was also arrested in connection with phone hacking and the bribery of police officers. The Fleet Street adventures of Ms. Brooks and Mr. Coulson are featured in Mr. Morgan’s book “The Insider.”

“I have offered them both my support as a friend,” he said.

Mr. Morgan was also a friend and colleague of Sean Hoare, the first former News of the World reporter to link Mr. Coulson to phone hacking. Mr. Hoare died at the age of 47 on Monday. The police have said Mr. Hoare’s death was not suspicious. The outcome of toxicology reports are pending.

“I was shocked and saddened to hear of Sean Hoare’s death,” Mr. Morgan said.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/24/world/europe/24hacking.html?_r=2&smid=tw-nytimes&seid=auto

Morgan flamboyant?

Now really

Pressure on Piers Morgan as Daily Mirror phone-hacking allegations grow

Piers Morgan is facing questions on both sides of the Atlantic as a former employee claimed that phone hacking had taken place while he was editor of the Daily Mirror.

12:29PM BST 26 Jul 2011

The CNN presenter has repeatedly denied allegations made in both the British and US media that he presided over a culture of illegal activity during his nine-year stint at the paper.

James Hipwell, a former Daily Mirror journalist, claimed on Saturday that phone hacking was "endemic" under Mr Morgan's editorship and that he would be prepared to testify to the judicial inquiry into the scandal.

"Piers was extremely hands-on as an editor. He was on the [newsroom] floor every day, walking up and down behind journalists, looking over their shoulders. I can't say 100 per cent that he knew about it. But it was inconceivable he didn't," he told the Independent.

Mr Hipwell was jailed in 2006 for conspiracy to breach the Financial Services Act as part of the "City Slickers" share tipping scandal.

Claims made by Conservative MP Louise Mensch that Mr Morgan knew about phone hacking at the paper have also received widespread coverage in Britain and the US.

Mrs Mensch made the allegations under the protection of parliamentary privilege, which defends her from a defamation lawsuit, during Rupert Murdoch's appearance before the culture, media and sport committee.

She misquoted an entry from his book 'The Insider', where Mr Morgan referred to phone hacking as "a little trick".

Mr Morgan confronted the MP live on CNN last week, accusing her of "an absolute, blatant lie" and challenging her to make the claims outside of parliament and denying ever using phone hacking for stories.

A spokeswoman for CNN said that Mr Morgan had been asked about the accusations and had strongly denied them.

Mr Hipwell's claims come in the wake of a New York Times article which quoted five former journalists at the People, the Mirror's Sunday sister paper, who claimed that phone hacking had take place between the late 1990s and early 2000.

The Sunday Mirror was also accused of "routinely" hacking the phones of celebrities in an effort to keep up with the News of the World.

A former employee of the paper told the BBC that the illegal technique was used on almost daily basis to hack the phones of Rio Ferdinand, Liz Hurley and others.

"One afternoon in the newsroom I saw Liz Hurley's phone being hacked and a reporter listen to her mobile phone messages and take a note of what was said.

"It was a Thursday and I was told that there wasn't much on there - just something about lunch from another woman so they would keep trying before the weekend to see what they could find," the source claimed.

Trinity Mirror said: "Our journalists work within the criminal law and the Press Complaints Commission code of conduct."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/phone-hacking/8662018/Pressure-on-Piers-Morgan-as-Daily-Mirror-phone-hacking-allegations-grow.html

Wonder if Morgans show will be on tonight at 8pm?

Could Piers be no. 14 in the Rouges Gallery?

'There is no way I would take a risk' Kate McCann.



Surely there was no bigger risk to take. Leaving 3 kids under 4 in a unsecured dark apartment, out of sight of Kate, Gerry and the Tapas group as they dined and drank loads nearly 150 meters away. Even the so called checks were not done properly. One dude just listening outside, Kate even saying she nearly failed to enter the bedroom until a breeze alerted her to check properly. If there was no breeze detected she would have walked away none the wiser to the fact that Maddie had gone, nor if the twins had choked on their own vomit or stopped breathing even. I expect in reality the checks were a cover for deeds already done anyway.



Then those same parents get invited to speak on safe parenting around Europe!!!!! That is frightening. Whoever organised that should be investigated too.



It's a farce of Monty Pythonesque proportions:



In fact I can imagine a stern Detective (John Cleese) in a police interview room facing a shifty looking suspect (Michael Palin) across the table.



"We have found blood, blood on the floor, blood on the wall, those dogs have indicated cadaever juice on your wife's clothes, on a cuddly toy, in a cupboard and then there's the death juice in a hire car you hired three weeks later, yes, three weeks later...... I put it to you Mr.McCann that Madeliene is dead, she died in 5A, on holiday,her life is gone, she is no more!!!"



"No, no, no, 'she's uh,..um .she's been abducted"



"Abducted?!?"



Yep, moment our backs were turned VOOM! Out the window, down the street, gone....!



"VOOM"?!? The time frame was so short she couldn't have been VOOMED even if she wanted to!!!"



"They move fast these foriegn abductors, they're very well trained!!"......



"TRAINED?!?"........



...fade to big wooden gate.....swinging open and revealing a sign

The camera pans through the gate..... past Instructor Levi Taite as he is showing a group how to leave a house through a window without leaving any signs of departure on the window ledge. Then on to Ray Pairman who is demonstrating a new product that can slowly repair broken window shutters over a ten hour period..........all instructors are swarthy, have no facial features and are wearing biege trousers..

CNN's Piers Morgan 'told interviewer stories were published based on phone tapping'

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/phone-hacking/8664704/CNNs-Piers-Morgan-told-interviewer-stories-were-published-based-on-phone-tapping.html

Yesterday, All Piers Morgans' Troubles Seemed So Far Away...

...now it looks as though they're here to stay.

by James Wolcott

July 27, 2011, 11:57 AM



http://www.vanityfair.com/online/wolcott/2011/07/yesterday-all-piers-morgans-troubles-seemed-so-far-away.html

This can only be good news!

jd wrote:This can only be good news!

Exactly. The light at the end of his particular tunnel will turn out to be an oncoming train.
They are still using the matntra of "exoneration" to mean nothing more than "I was not prosecuted". Where else have we heard that ?

CNN have just suspended Piers Morgan according to twitter (I would with a rope from a great height)

ExNOTWjourno2 Marie X
CNN Suspend Piers. M
2 minutes ago

Phone hacking:

John Whittingdale calls for Piers Morgan to return to UK


[snipped more on link]

The chair of a parliamentary phone hacking inquiry has added his voice to calls for Piers Morgan to return to the UK and answer questions about the alleged illegal interception of voicemails during his time at the Daily Mirror.


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/phone-hacking/8681863/Phone-hacking-John-Whittingdale-calls-for-Piers-Morgan-to-return-to-UK.html

Well done to Louise Mensch

But to paraphrase Blackadder
"He will twist and turn like a ... twisty turny thing."

The only person jailed in the phone/computer hacking scandal so far is the guy who put shaving foam in Rupert Murdoch's face.

Maybe this is Piers trying to hitch a left back to the UK

The net is closing even tighter on Morgan. Paul McCartney is now contacting police about this phone hack. Go Paul!

Piers Morgan points finger at Heather Mills over phone hacking


Piers Morgan has pointed the finger at Heather Mills over claims of phone hacking surrounding her ex-husband Sir Paul McCartney.

6:23AM BST 12 Aug 2011

Ms Mills has said that a senior Mirror Group journalist admitted hacking messages left for her by the former Beatle.

The star later said that he planned to contact police over allegations that his voicemail was intercepted.

Former Daily Mirror editor Mr Morgan told US talk show host Conan O'Brien: "Paul McCartney is apparently now claiming someone hacked his phone.
"I kind of thought when Heather Mills poked her head up above the parapet, the whole thing got completely ridiculous.

"I suspect it was Mills because in the divorce, if you study the divorce papers, Paul McCartney accused Heather then of hacking into his phones and passing information to the papers.

"Heather Mills is not the best person to be throwing any dynamite at anyone on this. It's a bit annoying - I'm hacked off."

Mr Morgan, now a talk show host on CNN, has previously said: “I have never hacked a phone, told anyone to hack a phone nor published a story obtained from hacking

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/phone-hacking/8694779/Piers-Morgan-points-finger-at-Heather-Mills-over-phone-hacking.html

One of my favourite sites disputes Piers Morgan´s claims:

http://www.adweek.com/news/press/fast-chat-piers-morgans-nemesis-133802